WP-06-41

Introduction

National and international policy-makers have renewed interests in ethnic diasporas. However, even between departments within the same governments, there are very different approaches to, or understandings of, diasporas. Some see them potentially as social formations that can bring economic benefits, others see diasporas as inherently disruptive to national societies or as threats to security. Here, a variety of current views and policy lines are explored surrounding diasporas, a category which represents some of the key characteristics of our times.